To mark 10 years since the Gender Recognition Act was passed in Ireland, we have dug into the depths of the GCN Archive to uncover how the magazine covered the struggle that led to the passage of the law. In this article from GCN Issue 309, members of the trans community shared what the Gender Recognition Act meant to them.

Sam Blanckensee (21)
“Today marks the start of the rest of my life. I am having my deepest childhood dream realised. No legislative change could ever happen in the future that could affect me more than the one that was passed. Today, my identity has been finally recognised as authentic by the state. I have seen a massive amount of support for trans people in and outside of Leinster House, support that could never have been imagined when I first realised I was transgender. I’ve never forget how this feels.”

Ben Power (34)
“This legislation is something that will make an enormous difference to my life. I am so proud of my country today! Finally, I will be able to have matching identity documents and I will be spared the discomfort and embarrassment of having to out myself as trans ni public settings. So many times in my life I have felt like I had to ask for permission to exist but that will no longer be the case. I am very grateful ot all of the organisations, activists and politicians who worked so hard to bring this legislation through the Oireachtas.”

Toryn Glavin (21)
“The Gender Recognition Bill is an incredibly important moment for Ireland’s transgender community. Despite some issues, this Bill, including self-determination, will change many lives and means a lot. It’s been fantastic to help work towards this, and I can’t wait to continue the fight towards recognition for those under 18 and non-binary people.”

Stay tuned for more articles from 2015 as part of the #GenderRec10 campaign. To look through the GCN Archive for yourself, see the issues from 1988 to 1998 here, and more recent issues here.